Confessions of an economy Killer

[disneysteve]

I have had things arrive broken and once even had a kitchen item shipped to me that looked used.
We sent away for refrigerator magnets for a kindergartner to display her work. The picture showed what looked like dime size and ended up being the size of a pencil eraser. Need 4 of them to hold anything to fridge not what the item said / not what was pictured / or not what was reviewed.

I bought a pair of shoes for a wedding, i was looking for an exact color so it was faster to look online was a medium of the road brand barely lasted the whole wedding and started to come apart.
i bought a shirt that one side was not even sewn together ALL from Amazon . ALL not saving me time as i had to return. have returned more stuff then i kept.

Maybe i am just the MOST unlucky amazon shopper out there as others seem to have zero problems.

Some of that is probably just bad luck. Some of it, not to point a finger, could be user error. I've been guilty of that myself - not fully reading an item description. I once bought a sound bar for our family room TV and failed to scroll all the way down to the specs. The thing came and was a couple inches too long for our wall unit so I had to return it (at my expense). I wonder if that magnet listing included the measurements of the magnets somewhere in the listing. Pictures can definitely be deceiving.

It's also a good idea to read the reviews. Some of them are worthless but when you see a trend where numerous people make similar comments you can be pretty sure that they're accurate, good or bad.

I do buy shoes on Amazon but only to reorder specific models that I've had before. I wear Rockport walking shoes and get the same ones over and over. I also get the same New Balance 609 sneakers and reorder those whenever I need a new pair. I wouldn't randomly order shoes that I hadn't had before.

The only time I can think of that I bought clothing was also brand name - all of my dress shirts are from Van Heusen and the outlet near me was out of something so I went on Amazon and ordered a couple and they were fine.

We are big Amazon fans in our house. Rarely does a week goes by where one of us doesn't order something. I just checked and we bought 8 items on Amazon in September and 5 in August. And Amazon is not the only online shopping we do but it's definitely the main place.

[Smallsteps]

I really not a big Amazon fan anyway but these experiences have not helped. i went back to site to check if i had missed something on the dimensions on magnets etc NOPE .The customer service person i spoke to said yeah lots of people returned those magnets they thought whomever updated the description.
No where in description of the cookware was dried noodle on the inside. no reviews warning me either.

The reviews have been hit or miss Again sticking only to set name brands perhaps would be safe the shirt not sewn was a brand name.

My biggest dislike for online is delivery. they say one day lets say Tuesday so I make arrangements for neighbor to watch out if i am at work and it never fails either comes on a different day. In my area they have had a pile left at a common area i guess close enough. At a community BBQ the property manager brought out a pile we could sift through to see if any were ours more often then not, people already gt a refund for item NOT delivered to the correct address or got sent a second to replace a LOST package. How long can they do that before not eating the cost of item? They have been eating this for a long time now.
I have returned enough crap that i am close to being on their list of too many returns.
I had to laugh that Amazon is being sued by employees as they must wait in line to be searched/ scanned as they leave from work in case they stole something and Amazon does not want to pay for they time they wait in line for the scan of employees. I have heard some awful items from friends and a family member that worked in HQ in Seattle. I try to avoid them for practices that are way overboard.but my customer experience has just sucked.

[disneysteve]

My biggest dislike for online is delivery. they say one day lets say Tuesday so I make arrangements for neighbor to watch out if i am at work and it never fails either comes on a different day. In my area they have had a pile left at a common area i guess close enough. At a community BBQ the property manager brought out a pile we could sift through to see if any were ours more often then not, people already gt a refund for item NOT delivered to the correct address or got sent a second to replace a LOST package.

That's bizarre. If the property manager had a pile of packages, why didn't he/she just get them to the right homes?

My only real complaint with package delivery is that the delivery person used to ring the bell or knock and they don't do that anymore. I have no idea why. So unless we hear the truck pull up, we don't know the package is there. My wife is good about watching the tracking info and is set up to receive delivery notifications so that works for the most part though occasionally the notification doesn't actually come through until quite some time after the delivery was made.

I can only think of one time when a package got "lost". Our regular carrier was on vacation and the person covering the route delivered our package to 1017 instead of 1117. It just so happened that 1017 was vacant so that package sat on the porch for a couple of weeks before our regular carrier noticed it sitting there and brought it to us. We had already gotten a replacement shipment from the company (it was from Walmart.com in that case) so we ended up with a double order which was fine.

I understand that some folks have issues with Amazon itself, but again, online shopping is way more than Amazon. Virtually every store has an online presence. We have bought stuff online from Apple, Best Buy, Ebay, Etsy, Target, WalMart, Hot Topic, Old Navy, JC Penney, Van Heusen, Le Creuset, several specialty sewing/quilting companies, and more. Not only can you get the same merchandise that is sold in stores, often at a better price, but you can also get a lot of items that simply aren't available in stores. Etsy is a perfect example as it is mainly handmade and custom items there. Even major retailers offer a lot of stuff on their websites that they don't stock in the stores. My wife just ordered an item from JoAnn Fabric. She shops in their store all the time but wanted an item that is online only. And with clothing especially, the store may have a couple of color choices for a shirt, for example, but at their website they'll have the full line of choices. Or have sizes that aren't in stock in the store.

[disneysteve]

My wife went to Target today with a shopping list of several items we needed. They were out of 3 of the items she went for so she came home and placed an online order. She could have saved herself the trouble and just ordered everything online instead.

[Smallsteps]

That's bizarre. If the property manager had a pile of packages, why didn't he/she just get them to the right homes?

My only real complaint with package delivery is that the delivery person used to ring the bell or knock and they don't do that anymore. I have no idea why.

There is only a PT person on this multi acre area and the common building is just easier ( to dump packages) i guess for delivery drivers instead of going to the numbered homes?
why the PT person did not at the very least call people as there is a phone roster is because they suck at their PT job.


The no knock get through as fast as possible ( if you knock a person might hold you up or point out the package belongs to someone else) is the way the OFTEN independent drivers get through their QUOTA to get paid. If you do not meet different metrics you do not make their " make up to x amount" advertised. Perhaps that is why they always are re-filling those jobs.
I find it awful but not surprising each Amazon labor practice that comes out.

i just find it insane that Amazon will replace stolen or missing shipments etc (often people find the package and keep the item anyway.), but feel the need to do like a TSA screening of their Employees at the end of their shift. Apparently off the clock according to a lawsuit.
Why not make them work in their underwear ( no where to stash items) like in the movies where drug people repackage drugs or count money...


We did get off on a different subject but each day i look and see so called articles about lack of savings

i honestly am getting tired that much like info commercials to get around the AD or SPONSORED flags (online), they have a whole article where the "reporter" talks to someone at ( insert bank or broker) and then make it a de facto AD for said bank or broker. I saw one of those yesterday it was i double checked to see if marked as ad/ sponsored etc.

[disneysteve]

The no knock get through as fast as possible

I get that, but I'm not suggesting to knock and wait. Just knock and run. That's what they used to do. They would knock/ring and by the time we got to the door, they were in the truck pulling away, but at least we knew the package was there.

i honestly am getting tired that much like info commercials to get around the AD or SPONSORED flags (online), they have a whole article where the "reporter" talks to someone at ( insert bank or broker) and then make it a de facto AD for said bank or broker. I saw one of those yesterday it was i double checked to see if marked as ad/ sponsored etc.

This happens in a couple of local magazines that we get. There is a 3 or 4 page "article" on financial stuff but it's written by the financial management company advertised at the end of the article. Some of the info is legit but overall, it's just a glorified advertisement for their services.

[scfr]

So for years i have heard we ( Americans ) have a dismal savings rate and are spendthrifts,
Well today i read an article online (byline said CNBC) said some (especially millennial) have taken savings seriously and Are Stingy and Selfish and not spending and are to blame for ruining the economy.

( Sarcasm)
So i will confess.... i obviously am too self centered as i am not spending enough so Starbucks can hire another PT barista, i am not frequenting every restaurant in my zip code.
i am not buying every trend , updating phones each week and maxing out my credit cards. I have made deposits to ( gasp) savings. i need to be stopped before i am totally out of debt.

Then the pendulum will swing and Sooner or later some sad half wit will write an article saying i am not saving enough and will end up living in a van down by the river because of it.

I wish they would be cooler about it ....maybe hire fashion writers so we can know the new look for fall is huge debt and having an EF is so last season. why are they even writing this drivel.

HAHAHA!
The 2 thoughts that immediately jumped to my mind:

- Someone really needs to start a blog or website called "Economy Killers"

- Breaking (Fake) News Headline: "US Treasury Investigates Online Community Whose Members Boast of Being Economy Killers"

[disneysteve]

The one thing I never hear talked about is how savers still help the economy. When I put money in our bank account, the bank doesn't take physical cash and stick it in a box with my name on it. They used those deposits to fund investments and loans so that people can buy cars and houses, do home repairs, and more. And the banks and brokerages use income to pay their employees and contractors. That money I'm saving is still circulating throughout the economy. Even though I'm not spending it directly, it is fueling other people's spending.

What would happen to banks and brokerages if everybody suddenly stopped saving and investing? They'd all close up and put thousands of people out of work. Getting loans would be nearly impossible. Sure we need spenders but we need savers, too.

[rob62521]

I would disagree. I think immediate gratification is alive and well. The problem with physical stores is that for years they grossly underestimated the rise of online shopping and now they are paying the price. They kept expanding and building more and more stores all while consumers shifted more and more of their purchases to the internet and apps. With Amazon Prime and other services, I can order things and have them delivered the very same day without ever leaving my house. You can't get much more instant gratification than that. No more driving to the mall, searching for a parking space, and going in and out of multiple stores until I find what I'm looking for. Plus it's cheaper online.

Your comment about having enough stuff is largely a generational thing. I don't know how old you are but I'm guessing you're not a 20 or 30-something just starting out, furnishing your first apartment or house, recently married, starting a family, etc. We are both 55 and are just like you. I rarely buy anything at this point in my life unless it's to replace something that broke or wore out. Years ago, we were often shopping recreationally in our spare time but now we have everything we need. In fact, we're actively working on getting rid of clutter and excess.

OK, Steve, I see your point. I guess I was just thinking from my own perspective on the immediate gratification angle and then when you said you disagreed and why, I think if the huge houses going up. Got to have stuff to fill them, right?

We are close to the same age...I am 58.

[Smallsteps]

The one thing I never hear talked about is how savers still help the economy. When I put money in our bank account, the bank doesn't take physical cash and stick it in a box with my name on it. They used those deposits to fund investments and loans so that people can buy cars and houses, do home repairs, and more. And the banks and brokerages use income to pay their employees and contractors. That money I'm saving is still circulating throughout the economy. Even though I'm not spending it directly, it is fueling other people's spending.

What would happen to banks and brokerages if everybody suddenly stopped saving and investing? They'd all close up and put thousands of people out of work. Getting loans would be nearly impossible. Sure we need spenders but we need savers, too.

That thought and process may be too deep for who they write for.

I find MOST so called financial articles they must be aiming at junior high school kids or it is like the writer thinks his audience are morons.

[disneysteve]

That thought and process may be too deep for who they write for.

Probably true. I'm just surprised that with all of the financial stuff I read, I don't think I've ever read a single article about this.

the writer thinks his audience are morons.

Well the writer is probably right about that.